"Sakura!" A shout. A hand grabbed me. Yoichi's warm smile and focused gaze brought comfort to my empty soul. "Hey, where were you at school?" I just stared, still fazed by what I was planning to do. "I was tired. So I stayed home." I said. Yoichi tilted his head and squinted his eyes. As if he was studying an unknown organism. "Join the team. We need you." He said. "Nah, I'm good." Yoichi grabbed my arm and yanked it with all his might, causing me to stumble. He pushed me into the ground, I raised my head in anger but the bright light blinded me. He reached down with a grin that had no bad intentions. "Get up, cornball." He said. I lifted my hand in order to block the light but he quickly slapped it away. We stared at each other for a full minute. Maybe…maybe, no. I slapped his hand away and stood up.
I turned away from Yoichi and walked away. I don't need snacks anyway…I should have accepted his offer. I'm such an idiot. I opened my door only immediately to hear Ray yelling on the top of her lungs. "SOMEBODY CALL THE AMBULANCE!" What the hell?! I burst into a full sprint through the hallway and turned into the living room. "RAY! ARE YOU OKAY?!" Only to see my father limp in her arms, not moving an inch—skin pale, chest barely rising. Sora stood in the corner, whispering apologies over and over again. I grabbed Sora by her shoulders and shook her frantically. "What happened? Sora! TELL ME WHAT HAPPENED!" But she kept apologizing, her voice cracking more and more. I bolted to my room and grabbed my phone. What's the number?! They have the same number as the police right?! Is he dead?! Am I never gonna see him again?! My heart sank to my chest as my vision began to blur. "I'm sorry." Suddenly my mother ran into my room and snatched my phone out of my hand and called the ambulance.
The hospital air was cold, too clean, too empty. I sat in the waiting room, running my hand through my hair over and over again. Gripping the strands as tight as I could. Why should I care? Everyone gets sick eventually. It's nothing. It's no big deal, haha right? My hands began to shake. God, if you're listening. I'm sorry for wasting the gift you gave me. I'm sorry. But please, not this. Just this once…don't take anything from me. A nurse walked in and stared at my pathetic frame. "Your father wants to see you." I shot up, nearly knocking over the chair and rushed down the hall.
My father lay in the bed, eyes dull but focused. Looking nothing like the man who used to scold me or push me to play, just a tired old man. "Sakura." He said calmly. "It's cancer." I didn't know how to respond. I just blinked. "If I don't get treatment soon, I won't make it." I stood there for a moment, processing. "I can pay for it!" I said with a sly crack in my voice. "I've been saving up. I've got enough! We can do this father! You'll be okay." But he looked at me, blank and unmoved. "No." He said. I ran over to his bed and grabbed his hand. "What the hell are you talking about?!" "I won't let you waste your life savings on a dying man. It's not worth it. My time's almost up."
I stared at him, pupils shaking and my eyes wide. "Please, father…" He couldn't even look me in my eyes. I'm so pathetic. "I thought you weren't my son. So my death is none of your business, stranger." The silence ate every bit of sorrow in the room. A stranger…I know I'm not good enough, and I never will be. I'm a coward, a self absorbed loser. But…this fire burning in my soul. I can't, I won't, every memory, every grudge, every wound, I'll burn it all. I tightened my grip on my father's arm. "Okay." This deep abyss of despair that I've been drowning in can't keep me down forever. I have to move forward. Even if it takes the rest of my very being to light it up for this limited time. "Once I become a professional soccer player, I'll pay for your damn treatment…whether you want me to or not."
My father's mouth curled into a smirk, not smug, not cruel, but proud. "Is that a promise?" I gripped my wrist with all my might, trying to stop the trembling. My veins popped, eyes gleaming, mouth lifting into the ghost of a grin. This isn't a wish. This is conviction. "I swear!" I lifted my chin and stood tall, my voice booming with defiance and fire. "That's a promise! From yours truly, Sakura Yori! I'll rise from the dead and kill anyone who gets in my way!"